Tour of the hospital

Blog 16


Chinese word of the day for Taxi: don’t know wish I did.

(Editor’s note: This Blog was sent to me in a series of Text messages from Scott’s phone Wednesday night starting around 11:00pm California time. Steve)


Woke up feeling worse. Couldn't take it anymore so went to office and told them I want to see a doctor. The translator tried convincing me to get more medicine from master Chu but his meds are not working (or not working fast enough) so I said ‘no I want a doctor’. So she told me that in an hour she would get a taxi at 10am and accompany me to the doctor. I waited and even made my oatmeal.



My oatmeal wasn't getting thick. Still watery. I couldn’t eat it. While waiting for the oatmeal to ‘cook’ my spoon I took from the kitchen fell and broke so I have no spoon! Like I didn't have enough problems already. Luckily, I had asked my roommate to bring me back a couple eggs. That's all I ate for breakfast.


Then at 10am I went down to the office. No translator there just the Chinese lady who runs the school ‘store’ downstairs where you can buy snacks. She spoke no English. I tried saying “taxi” and “translator” but she just pointed outside the room and yelled. Luckily one of the translators came inside and I told her that the other translator said we’d go at 10. This translator said classes will be over at 10:30 then I’d go to town. So I walked back up 48 stairs to my room and waited.


another half hour passed but I decided that I was gonna wait an extra ten minutes before I took all those stairs back down to the office. Just then I heard a knock at the door of my room. It was the translator and she said we can go into the town of Muping to see the doctor now. In a taxi, we drove About 45 min to the hospital.


I don’t know how long the trip to town usually takes. The taxi driver was driving crazy like usual passing cars by going in the wrong side of the road, speeding, and more than once, barely missing an oncoming car. I just knew I was going to die in a car crash so there would no need for the doctor. Once, the taxi driver tried passing a Big Rig but when we were along side him (in the opposite side of the road) the big rig started speeding up not letting us pass. Then just our luck a car was in our lane heading right for us.


I thought...”yup no need for doctor cuz this taxi will kill me”. Then the taxi driver just pulled the taxi in the middle of the two lanes and barely got by both the on coming car and the Big Rig. I had a little heart attack from that situation.







But eventually we made it to the hospital in one piece, willingly and not in an ambulance... In the hospital, the translator and I walked around looking for someone to talk to. The hospital was nice for such a poor town. So we finally found a doctor and who looks at my throat and makes a face like she was eating something sour. That made me think..’crap!’ then the doctor told the translator this is serious because it's my tonsils and I need to sleep here minimum of 3 nights.


The cost for the hospital was going to be around 2000 yuan which is 320 us dollars. I was to pay 1000 now and 1000 when I would be discharged from the hospital three days from now. Luckily, before I left the academy I put 1000 yuan in a hiding place in my wallet. I also put bout 200 yuan




in the main section of my wallet so people wouldn’t know I had so much money on me. I also put an extra 1000 in my arm jacket zipper pocket for emergency. How did they know that I walked into the hospital with 2000 yuan and the bill was going to be exactly that? When the translator said my tonsils were so bad and could get worse to a point I wouldn’t be able to breathe. So good thing we came now. I was not scared about staying in a foreign hospital, getting shots, I think I was just relieved I came here before it got really worse or I'm just glad knowing I’ll feel better after this. But one thing I know is that I wasn't was scared. I’ve never had to stay in a hospital back in the US so this hospital is also a first time experience for me.








There was no "No Smoking Sign" so people smoked in the lobby, but there was this sign:


Then we went to my room. I was glad because I was very thirsty and the halls downstairs smelled like cigarette smoke and I couldn't stand it anymore. When I got to my room there were four beds in the room. Three of the beds had people on them. I thought oh great this will be awkward. I think the translator saw the look on my face because she asked me if I wanted my own room. I said ‘yes, I'll even pay extra’ but the nurse said no room available, they are all full. So I had to deal with it. Now instead of Sam being my roommate I have a old man with sunglasses on. An old lady who always coughs and an old man who keeps clearing his throat and spitting.




After I saw my room, I went with the translator to the “blood work room”. There they took some blood from my finger. The results for my blood was '116' I don’t know what it was tested for but they said 'less than 10' is normal. So mine was really high.





Then I went with the translator to get some food. In the hospital eating area, I got four big dumplings with nasty vegetables and barely any meat. Then we left the hospital to walk to a nearby store to buy some water and wafer cookies for me to snack on. When we went back to the room we saw my taxi and I paid him 80 yuan for the ride and paid for the translator’s ride back to the school.



The translator had to go back to the school and she said she will try to send another translator later. I Asked if they can bring my laptop and chargers to me so I am not bored and would have something to take my mind off this place. She said she will try.


The translator left and after I ate like half of my first dumpling, my nurse came in took my temperature and my blood pressure. Then she came back with a shot which she gave me in my forearm. Gave me three pills to swallow and two tablets to dissolve on the top of my tongue and under my tongue. Now with the tablets dissolving, I couldn't eat. After twenty minutes of laying down and listening to my roommates cough, spit, and talking (yelling) the nurse came back and had me sit by the wall and breath through this container for about 10 minutes. I let the tablets dissolve and kept my arm still after the first shot.











I had to go bath room and when I came out four doctors were at my bed. They asked me series of questions like if I allergic to anything or if I had any injuries or if I took any meds. The last question was the strangest. They asked if I have any brothers or sisters I said ‘one sister’. I answered no all other questions and then I told them I took pills from the academy. I was surprised they spoke English pretty well but they had to think before each question. Really weird.


Then after that the nurse came back with an IV. I’ve never had an IV in me before but I still wasn't scared. I was shocked myself that I was not more scared. So then she put the IV needle in my hand and as the juice started to flow my arm began to feel a bit cold. It was weird. Then another nurse came in with a needle and said I get shot on the Side of my butt. Well she didn’t ‘say’ that she ‘gestured’ what she wanted. They try gesturing what they want me to do like breath in and out on the tube. I get confused at first but I finally understand. So she gives me the shot in my butt and it hurt really bad. But I knew it'll help me. So now I am laying down, butt hurting from shot, throat feeling a little better, and eating my wafers. I can't eat after 10pm tonight because I get a blood test tomorrow.


That's all for now I'll write more later.


-Scott.


Sent from my iPhone


(Editor’s Note: The last text I got from Scott was at 1:15am Thursday October 21, 2010 stating his phone was at 20% and it might run out of power)